For more than 25 years, the main story of The Bold and the Beautiful has been the story of the love life of Brooke Logan Forrester (fascinatingly played by Katherine Kelly Lang) . She’s been married to all the Forresters — Eric, Thorne and Ridge –and is the mother of five children. When it came time to die from cancer, Stephanie Forrester chose Brooke’s arms to die in.

Brooke has been such a good soap heroine because her life is centered on what soaps are all about: love. To Brooke, love is all. Whoever she has sex with she must be in love with. And because she believes love is her fate, she believes any of her actions toward that end are justified.

Armed with the nobility of that motivation, Brooke has gained much in life. She became a top scientist and later designer at Forrester Creations, inventor of the Belief fabric formula and lead designer of Brooke’s Bedroom, a line of luxe lingerie. When she became Mrs. Eric Forrester, she became rich and famous at a very young age.

But it’s her continuous love affair with Ridge Forrester that has dominated her life. A young girl when she met him, she set her sights on him immediately even though he was involved with and later married Caroline Spencer Forrester. Though men came and went in her life, it was always the love of Ridge she sought — and won and lost many times. The two have been married three times.

Because Brooke believes nothing she does is wrong, she has trespassed often on the lives of many around her. She fell in love with her daughter Bridget’s husband Nick Marone. She fell in love with her sister’s Katie’s husband Bill Spencer and had a torrid affair with him.

But right now everything that Brooke has stood for and believed is coming apart. She was set to remarry Ridge when her maid of honor Katie fainted in the middle of the ceremony. It turns out that Katie, who had been so harmed by Brooke when Brooke fell in love with her husband Bill, is now in love with Ridge. And Ridge is in love with Katie.

Now that Brooke is finally faced with what she can’t have – namely Ridge, the once inevitable “fate” of her love — it may be time for her to take a good look at herself. What is it about her that she has been able to steal so many other women’s men? How will she survive now that Katie has stolen her man. Will Broke ever change and see the errors of her ways ? Will she once again wrest Ridge from another women’s once arms?

Cheers to The Bold and the Beautiful for the most exciting soap recast of this or any other year: Soap superstar Thorsten Kaye has been signed to played Ridge Forrester, the show’s lead character, who was played from the show’s 1987 debut until last year by Ronn Moss. Kaye, of course, played Patrick Thornhart on One Life to Live and Zack Slater on All My Children, and was last seen in primetime as Anjelica Huston’s shady but adorable boyfriend Nick on Smash.

Thorsten Kaye: How will he change Ridge?

This bold recasting coup is so fascinating because Kaye and Moss are so different as actors. Both have the leading man’s requisite virility and good looks. But whereas Moss, with his legendary chiseled cheekbones, could have stepped off the cover of a romance novel, Kaye’s unshaven ruggedness is less generically handsome but much more down to earth.

Moss played Ridge, son of the Forrester dynasty of clothing designers, as a spoiled, mildly pompous rich kid. He was always under the thumb of his domineering mother Stephanie, played by Susan Flannery, who has retired from the show.

Kaye, a classically trained theater actor, has a lot more range than the somewhat flat Moss. Kaye can play romantic, he can play tender, he can play tough and he has fabulous diction (as demonstrated by his Patrick’s many renditions of the poem “Brown Penny” on OLTL.) He really is the quintessential soap leading man.

How will Kaye change Ridge? We hope the character will become more assertive, more nuanced and as a result more interesting. The Ridge who has been residing in Paris for the last year will come back to find a changed scene in his hometown of Los Angeles. Ridge’s ex-wife Brooke (Katherine Kelly Lang) has become secretly engaged to Bill Spencer (Don Diamont), a married man and a significant force in his own right. We can hardly witness the inevitable clash between macho Diamont, all bedecked in his trademark bling, and the fiery Kaye.

Speaking of male roles on B&B …

I have reached my limit and am fed up with that ultimate wuss Liam Spencer, as played by Scott Clifton. Although he spends his life huffing and puffing and sanctimoniously trying to hang on to his now ex-fiancée Hope Logan (Kim Matula), at heart he really can’t commit to her. Why else would he send a love montage email to his ex-wife Steffy? He’s already left Hope at the altar and has kept her hanging on for years. Now, Liam’s half-brother Wyatt (Darin Brooks) has fallen in love with Hope and has done everything to sweep her off her feet. We can’t help rooting for Wyatt as Liam has become unbearable. Wyatt at least has a clear allegiance to Hope, the only woman in his life. No matter how much the now unattractive Liam whines and carries on, he has no natural right to Hope’s love and affection